Reaching and Enrolling the Uninsured: Early Efforts to Implement the Affordable Care Act

The Affordable Care Act's success depends on whether eligible, uninsured persons can enroll in health coverage. Meeting enrollment goals partially hinges on the effectiveness of marketing campaigns to raise public awareness, and application assistance programs that help consumers enroll. This brief describes early state efforts, and finds that government officials have taken many positive steps including launching multi-pronged campaigns that combine broad marketing with grass-roots outreach, and funding community-based organizations and providers to provide hands-on assistance. Differences in the intensity of these efforts across states are stark, however, and may contribute to noticeably different enrollment experiences during early ACA implementation.

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